peculium

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [pɛˈkuː.li.ũː]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [peˈkuː.li.um]^[1]

Forms

pecūlium n (genitive pecūliī or pecūlī); second declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from pecū “cattle” through an unattested adjective ⟨*pecūlis⟩ “belonging to one's own livestock”, and Varro already connected them.^[2][1] Property originally consisted of cattle.^[3] De Vaan traces ⟨pecū⟩ to Proto-Indo-European *peḱ-u- (“cattle”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Köbler's first source is Plautus, whom he dates c. 250–184 BC.^[5] The OLD's earliest citation is from Plautus, of a slave's savings.^[2]

Semantic evolution

It meant money or property managed as his own by someone who could not legally own it, above all a slave's savings, as in Plautus, Varro and Virgil, and the property of a son still under his father's power, as in Livy.^[2][6] In Celsus it meant a reserve fund.^[2]

British Medieval Latin used it for property and resources, for cattle, and of Christ's flock.^[7] It was borrowed into Italian peculio and French pécule.^[1] Its adjective pecūliāris “of one's own” gave English peculiar in the mid-15th century.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of a slave's savings.^[2][5]
• 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it of a son's property.^[6][5]
• mid-15th century – English peculiar is recorded.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. A slave's or son's own property, savings.^[2][6]
2. A reserve fund.^[2]
3. (Medieval Latin) Property; cattle.^[7]

Word family

• expecūliātus
• pecūliāris
• pecūliārius
• pecūliō
• pecūliolum
• pecūliōsus
• pecūlor

Related words

• pecū
• pecūnia
• English peculiar

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
5. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ a b c Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
7. ^ a b Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com